Seventeen-year-old Roxanne Ryan stepped in front of her bedroom mirror, drumsticks in her hand, and struck her best rock-and-roll pose. She closed her eyes, imagining an arena filled with eager fans. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the ON button on the CD and listened to the opening of her 最喜爱的 Doll Head track. Crisp, clean, perfect.
Eyes shut tightly, she started to drum along with the band, pounding out rhythms on her dresser, her 台, 办公桌 and finally moving over to her drum set.
Now she was part of the music-part of the band. Nothing except the 音乐 and the moment. Still, Roxy couldn't resist sneaking a peek at her own image in the mirror.
That's it, she thought, shaking her wavy blond hair, furrowing her brow, and puckering her lips. That's "the face"--the face of a rock legend.
She topped off her drum solo with a forceful clang of the cymbal, and the 粉丝 went crazy. They chanted her name in unison, Roxy... Roxy... Roxy...
"Roxy!"
The dream seemed so real now, Roxy swore she could hear a crazed 粉丝 standing right 下一个 to her.
"Earth to Roxy! Will 你 please knock it off?"
Roxy opened her eyes and faced reality. Madison Square Garden was really her bedroom on Long Island. And the crazed 粉丝 was her twin sister, Jane, who stood in the doorway with her arms folded across her chest.
"What's up?" Roxy asked.
Jane sighed. "What's up is your drums. What is not up is me sleeping. Just how many solos do 你 plan on playing tonight? I was supposed to be on my first dream thirty-seven 分钟 ago."
Roxy looked at her watch. "What's the biggie, Jane? It's only nine o'clock." Then she noticed Jane was already in her pajamas. "Why are 你 going to 床, 床上 so early anyway?"
"I'm trying to rest up for my big 日 tomorrow," Jane replied.
"Big day?" Roxy shot back. "Come on, all you're doing tomorrow is taking the train to Washington, D.C."
"Not exactly," Jane responded. "I've got to register at the John Adams School and pick my classes and meet the kids. This is a big deal to me, Roxy. It's the summer before senior 年 and 你 know how much I want to get the McGill Scholarship to go to England for a 年 when I graduate. This program will really help me. I've got goals. "
Roxy couldn't believe her ears. "Like I don't have goals?" she said, pointing to her drum set. "My friend Justin's father got me an awesome gig. Tomorrow I'll be helping the Doll Heads record their Raw album. Now that's a big deal."
"How is that going to help 你 get into college? Are 你 applying to Doll Head University?" Jane asked.
"Hey!" Roxy objected. "The Doll Heads are a major band on a major record label, and this is their first acoustic album. This is rock-and-roll history in the making, and I'll be there to help."
"How?" Jane asked. "By getting them coffee?"
Roxy shrugged. "You're just jealous."
"No, I just need a little peace and quiet," Jane replied. "Your drums are even driving Ringo nuts."
Roxy glanced at the large reptile tank sitting on her cluttered dresser. Her pet 蟒蛇, python slithered around a large rock. "Ringo loves it when I play. Don't you, baby?" she said, leaning over the tank. Then she turned back to her sister. "I hope the Addams Family School appreciates your sense of humor."
"It's the John Adams School, not the Addams Family School, and it's the best precollege program in the country." Jane said. "And believe it 或者 not, it's also going to be fun. Living on a college campus "
"Meeting college guys?" Roxy interrupted.
"Who knows?" Jane added with a mischievous smile. "I just hope I can keep up. I want to do really well and go for that scholarship."
"Relax. 你 always do well," she said, gesturing at her sister's perfectly pressed pj's, her perfectly scrubbed face, and her perfectly smooth hair. "So stop stressing and go to bed."
"I will," Jane replied, "as soon as 你 stop pounding on those drums."
"Hey, I'm not pounding. This is my music." Roxy felt herself getting angry now.
"Oh, get over yourself," Jane said.
"You get over yourself!" Roxy said.
A deep voice interrupted the argument. "How about 你 both get over yourselves--and give me a break while you're at it?" Their father, Dr. Ryan, stood in the bedroom doorway glaring at them. "What's this all about?"
"Dad, Roxy won't stop playing her drums," Jane snapped, "and I need to rest up for tomorrow's trip."
Dr. Ryan gave Roxy a look, and she knew in an instant she would lose this battle. Jane just doesn't understand my world at all, she thought.
"Roxy, maybe 你 should ease up on the drums," he 说 gently, "just for tonight. Jane will be gone for three weeks. Then 你 can practice all 你 want. Okay?"
Roxy nodded. "Fine," she said, and she flopped onto her 床, 床上 as if she didn't care. "See 你 in three weeks, Jane."
"Works for me," Jane mumbled as she left the room.
Dr. Ryan started to close Roxy's door, but he paused for one last remark. "Try to be supportive of your sister, Rox. Tomorrow's a big 日 for her."
Roxy bit her tongue as the door closed and her father padded down the hall. What about my big day? she wondered. Why can't anyone see that tomorrow's a big 日 for me too? This is a huge opportunity. This is my future.
She turned her head on her 枕头 and gazed at the glass reptile cage. Ringo slowly raised his head from beneath the rocks. "We'll 显示 'em, won't we, Ringo?" she whispered. "We'll 显示 'em that I have a future too... in rock-and-roll history." She closed her eyes and listened to the cheers of her adoring fans.
Imaginary fans, yes. But, hey, it was a start.
由 the time Roxy woke up the 下一个 morning Jane was already gone. It was just as well, Roxy figured. They both could use the following three weeks apart to cool down after last night's argument.
Dressing in jeans and a vintage Led Zeppelin T-shirt, she flew down the stairs and stopped in front of a framed picture of her mother. This is it, Mom, Roxy 说 silently. My first big step into the 音乐 biz. She leaned over and kissed the photograph-a ritual she and her sister performed every day.
Her mom seemed to smile back proudly, her face captured in a sunny candid shot from two years ago. In fact, it was one of the last pictures taken of her before she died.
Then Roxy turned and headed for the kitchen, grabbing a quick bite to eat and 接吻 Dad's cheek before leaving for the train station.
Forty 分钟 on the Long Island Railroad and a subway ride later, Roxy found her way to the ultracool meatpacking district in lower Manhattan. The streets were paved with ancient cracked cobblestones, but most of the old buildings had been transformed into hip new boutiques, restaurants, and art galleries.
This must be the place, Roxy thought, matching the address on a slip of paper to a number on the steel door of a blocky brick warehouse. She pushed a white button, and a loud buzzer unlocked the door. "Rock-and-roll history, here I come," she said.
As soon as Roxy entered the hallway, she could hear a storm of activity up on the 秒 floor: cymbals crashing, guitars being tuned, voices shouting. Her 心 pounding, she slowly climbed the concrete stairs at the end of the hall.
Be cool, she told herself.
A young man holding a clipboard greeted her at the 最佳, 返回页首 of the stairs. A pencil was tucked behind his ear, and his long hair was plastered against his temples 由 black-framed glasses. "Oh, hi. And 你 are...?" he asked.
"Roxy Ryan," she answered. "I'm supposed to be a production assistant."
"Ryan... Ryan... Roxy. Here 你 are," the young man muttered, scrambling through a pile of papers. "I've got a job for 你 already."
"Great!" she gushed, hoping she'd get a chance to tune the band's guitars 或者 do a sound check. "You name it."
"Coffee," the man 说 bluntly. "The Doll Heads need coffee. Two blacks, one light, and one cream and sugar. Think 你 can handle that?"
Roxy tried not to roll her eyes. "I think so," she said, hating the fact that Jane had been right about the coffee.
The young man raised an eyebrow as if he didn't believe her. "Well, the coffee 大车, 购物车 is in the corner over here, and the band is in that room over there. Knock first."
Oh, well, Roxy thought. 你 have to start somewhere. She nodded and headed for the coffee cart, making sure to step carefully over the winding cables on the floor. Her eyes took in the whole room: a tangle of microphones and recording equipment, video cameras and lights, guitars and a drum set, all positioned in front of a spectacular view of the city's waterfront. Workers tinkered with camcorders and lights, and production assistants flitted around looking important.
Not wanting to gawk, Roxy moved on to the coffee 大车, 购物车 and grabbed a few empty cups. Just as she was figuring out how to operate the big steel pot, someone walked up behind her.
"You new?" a girl asked. "Never seen 你 before."
Roxy looked up to see a pretty girl with spiky black hair, pale white skin, and large blue eyes. She was dressed all in black and, in spite of the fact that she couldn't have been much older than Roxy herself, seemed to fit here.
"Yeah," Roxy said, smiling. "Does it 显示 that much?"
"No, it's just that you're about to give the band hot water," she pointed out. "This is the coffeepot over here." She nodded at a large chrome vat.
"Oh." Roxy turned red. "Thanks."
"No prob." The girl smiled and grabbed a cup. "Here, I'll help you. I know how the Doll Heads like their coffee. I'm a friend of the band. My name is Willow."
"Roxy," Roxy replied.
"Welcome aboard, Rox." Willow grinned. "Isn't this exciting? The Doll Heads Raw. Great album title, don't 你 think? And a great concept. Recording live in different New York locations. It's so cool. It'll give each song a different sound."
"It's brilliant," Roxy agreed. "But why the video cameras?"
"The band agreed to let RockVision film them recording for a Raw TV special."
Roxy's 心 jumped. "You mean this will be on TV?"
"Well, maybe. If 你 can manage to supply the band with their much-needed coffee." Willow handed Roxy a cardboard tray with four steaming cups.
"Are 你 kidding?" Roxy laughed. "This is what I've been waiting for. I still can't believe I'm going to meet the Doll Heads face-to-face! See 你 later, Willow."
I'm in the same building as the Doll Heads, she thought, crossing the loft. This rocks. This really, truly rocks! She stopped and once again reminded herself to be cool. 你 don't want to spill coffee on them, she thought. That is, if 你 ever find them. They weren't in the room that the guy with the glasses had indicated.
Roxy turned and froze in her tracks as a tall, balding producer type raced past, nearly knocking her over. "Everyone, stop and listen!" he shouted, and everyone in the room fell silent. "The session is cancelled! The Doll Heads have left the building! Pack it up and go home."
Roxy almost dropped her tray of coffee. Her knees felt weak as his words sank in. The Doll Heads have left? Pack it up and go home?
"Excuse me, sir?" Roxy nervously asked the man. "What time do 你 want us here tomorrow?"
The producer shook his head. "I don't want 你 here tomorrow," he snapped. "As of now we're not recording Raw. The group just isn't ready-or something..." The producer shook his head and walked away.
Not ready? Roxy 说 to herself. Cancelled? As in, my big opportunity is gone? Forever?
"This stinks," she muttered. "This really, truly stinks.
